FAQ

What is the supervision/hosting arrangement of ISTplus postdocs?

All ISTplus postdocs will have a supervisor and a co-supervisor. The main supervisor must be an IST Austria professor. The co-supervisor may be a 2nd IST Austria faculty member but it can also be an external person (eg. a faculty member at another institution or even a non-academic partner if appropriate). Candidates should propose their co-supervisor either at the time of application, or if selected, to the program panel after being selected.

Can I apply prior to completing my PhD?

Yes, provided that you will complete your PhD prior to beginning employment.

How many positions are available?

Approximately 12 per call.

What is the timeline for the selection process?

All candidates will be notified of the outcome of their application within 2 months after the application deadline. Candidates who receive an offer must take up employment within 5 months after the offer is made.

Are candidates already working at IST Austria eligible?

No, candidates who are already working at IST Austria are not eligible and their applications will not be considered by the selection committee.

Can reference letters be requested prior to fully submitted an application?

Yes. After starting an application you have the option to “save” the application without submitting it so that you can return to it and complete it later. Once you have entered your referees’ information and saved the application, a “contact referees” button will appear at the bottom of the page. Clicking this button will notify your referees that you have requested a letter of reference and they will receive an email from our application system informing them how to upload their reference letter.

By what date must my referees provide their reference letters?

All application documents, including reference letters, must be submitted no later than 23:59 (local time in Austria) on the application deadline (March 15th or September 15th). All applications which are incomplete at the application deadline will be considered ineligible and no exceptions will be made for providing reference letters or other application materials after the deadline.

I have already submitted my application but would like the change something or upload an updated version of one of my documents. What do I do?

Contact istplus@ist.ac.at. We will update your application accordingly provided your request is received prior to the application deadline.

Can I collect reference letters from my referees and send them myself?

No. All referees will receive a link with which they can upload their reference letter directly to our application tool. If for some reason they are unable to do this, they can contact us at istplus@ist.ac.at and we can upload the letters for them. The reference letters should not be sent via candidates.

How do I know if my referees have sent their letters of recommendation?

After your application has been fully submitted you can check the status of your reference letters by logging in and viewing your submitted application. The application system also enables you to send reminders via the application tool to referees who have not yet submitted their letters.

Who should I contact with questions about the application and selection process?

Please send all queries about the ISTplus program to istplus@ist.ac.at.

Can I apply in any of the research fields listed in www.ist.ac.at – and only in these?

Not necessarily. The list of research groups provided in www.ist.ac.at may include also groups who are in the process of leaving the institute –and will not be able to host new researchers in years following the current Call closure-, while at any point of time new groups may be in the process of joining the institute and might not have an official page in the institute website yet (but be fully eligible as potential hosts). For each Call, we will provide a list of all the groups where application to ISTplus fellowships are possible.

Can I include letters of support from my potential host(s) at IST Austria?

No. Application materials should not include any letters of support from your potential host at IST Austria. Additionally, your potential host may not be listed as one of the referees on your application.

May I include letter(s) of interest of academic host(s) for exchange / secondment?

No, unless the intersectoral character of the secondment is clearly justified. ISTPlus fellows will of course be also allowed to academic exchanges in the course of their fellowship, if agreed with the supervisor, but for the evaluation phase only the letters of potential hosts for secondments with a clear intersectoral added value will be considered.

What is the role of the proposed host(s) for intersectoral secondment(s) in the research statement?

The letters of interest in the proposal phase do not constitute a contractual commitment. Normally, the actual secondment will be subject to the conclusion of a formal cooperation agreement (to be set-up after the start of the fellowship). Although these issues are not expected to represent a problem and we will do every effort to enable such intersectoral collaborations, we strongly recommend you to include a contingency plan in your research statement, for the case that the cooperation agreement falls through –e.g. for unforeseen legal, financial or IPR issues.

Should I propose in my application a research plan for two and a half years, assuming that I provide a letter of interest from a intersectoral partner?

In principle, yes. However, please note that the approval of a 6 months extension (additional to the two-years fellowship) will be subject to the official approval by the Program Committee and may be refused, if actual duration of the secondment(s) phase does and/or the work to be performed do not adequately justify the intersectoral added value (see more details on this under External Partners). Please include a contingency plan addressing this eventuality.

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This project has received funding from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under the Marie Skłodowska-Curie grant agreement No 754411